The government will launch a drive next month to remove illegal billboards from city streets and highways, said
Road Transport and Bridge Minister Obaidul Qauder on Sunday.
“Bangladesh is a factory of producing leaders. And all of them are billboard leaders. The so-called leaders install billboards on city streets and highways posting their images as well as photographs of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and our Prime Minister,” he told a discussion in the capital.
He said, installing these billboards they want to show that they are ‘big leaders’. “Allegations are also there that they getting involved in extortion showing their billboards.”
Many billboards were installed on the occasion of National Mourning Day and those are yet to be removed, the Road Transport Minister said.
He said these billboards, apart from causing visual pollution, contribute to road accidents as divers of vehicles lose their concentration seeing billboards during their driving.
“I won’t tolerate those billboards. We’ll launch a drive next month (Nov) to remove these billboards,” Qauder said.
Road and Transport Programme and Advocacy for Social Change of Brac organised the policy dialogue titled ‘Legislative Initiative Promoting Road Safety’ at the city’s Brac Centre Inn.
Adviser to former caretaker government and executive chairperson of Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC) Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman made a power-point presentation at the progarmme on road safety with a focus on the proposed legislative initiatives.
BRAC executive director Dr Muhammad Musa and its director and in-charge of Road Safety Programme Ahmed Najmul Hussain also spoke at the meeting.
